RCA in the commercial property press:

Deserted Building Sites Add to Property Bust's Toll

The Wall Street Journal reports: Another facet of the real-estate bust: across the country, local authorities are facing a rise in complaints about environmental and safety hazards from construction sites where work has been frozen.

In the Phoenix area, where scores of unfinished condominiums and other projects dot the horizon, local officials report a surge in calls about increased dust and tumbleweeds from sites cleared of native foliage. In San Diego, a block of sidewalks was torn up for several months where construction of a 14-story residential tower was halted in early 2008.

On the Gulf Coast south of Sarasota, Florida, trash and other debris was blowing into Lemon Bay from an unfinished condominium project until local officials ordered a barrier fence put up in January. The four-story project of luxury condos had halted construction in late 2007, said Larry Bailie, a broker for the property.

No one tracks precisely how many construction projects nationally have been stopped by developers midstream. But an indication of the scale comes from New York-based Real Capital Analytics Inc., which estimates that there were 3,929 distressed commercial properties across the U.S. as of March 31 -- a 55% jump since Dec. 31, 2008. Roughly a quarter of the properties involve developments, unfinished, Real Capital said.